1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates in general to the field of user inputs to an information handling system, and more particularly to a universal keyboard controller data protocol.
2. Description of the Related Art
As the value and use of information continues to increase, individuals and businesses seek additional ways to process and store information. One option available to users is information handling systems. An information handling system generally processes, compiles, stores, and/or communicates information or data for business, personal, or other purposes thereby allowing users to take advantage of the value of the information. Because technology and information handling needs and requirements vary between different users or applications, information handling systems may also vary regarding what information is handled, how the information is handled, how much information is processed, stored, or communicated, and how quickly and efficiently the information may be processed, stored, or communicated. The variations in information handling systems allow for information handling systems to be general or configured for a specific user or specific use such as financial transaction processing, airline reservations, enterprise data storage, or global communications. In addition, information handling systems may include a variety of hardware and software components that may be configured to process, store, and communicate information and may include one or more computer systems, data storage systems, and networking systems.
Information handling systems typically allow user inputs through a number of different types of devices. Known input devices include a keyboard or mouse that communicates user inputs as electrical signals through a wired or wireless connection to a port of the information handling system. For example, with a keyboard, a keyscan matrix identifies the position of a keystroke by a user based on an electrical signal communicated through a USB interface. Typically, a microcontroller in a keyboard of the information handling system converts the keystroke into a Human Interface Device (HID) packet that is made available for use by components of the information handling system. Portable information handling systems typically have integrated keyboards and integrated pointing devices, such as touchpad pointing devices that are physically built into the housing of the information handling system along with the processing components.
One challenge with integration of a keyboard and pointing device into a portable information handling system is that a first set of wires is used to communicate signals from the keyboard to the motherboard of the information handling system and a separate set of wires is used for the pointing device. These separate sets of wires can be bulky
Known integrated keyboards send an actual keyscan for the key being pressed. With integrated keyboards, the keyboard scan matrix may be moved from the main embedded controller of the information handling system to a generic dedicated keyboard scan controller. A change in the keyboard matrix would then necessitate a change in the firmware loaded into the dedicated keyboard scan controller. This change could increase the cost of the dedicated keyboard scan controller by requiring an updateable part, such as a flash memory, storage for a downloadable matrix or different silicon for each keyboard matrix that is produced.